Protector

The present application claims priority to and incorporates by reference the entire contents of Japanese Patent Application No. 2024-089763 filed in Japan on Jun. 3, 2024.

The present invention relates to a protector.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. JP 2014-82880 A discloses a protector in which a plurality of wiring members is inserted into a protector main body.

Meanwhile, although the protector described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. JP 2014-82880 A described above can hold the wiring member with the protector main body (base member), it is difficult to keep a positional relationship between the wiring members, and there is room for further improvement in holding the wiring member at an appropriate position.

In light of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a protector capable of holding and accommodating a wiring member at an appropriate position.

In order to achieve the above mentioned object, a protector according to one aspect of the present invention includes a bottom wall portion extending along a vertical direction in a state of being fixed to a part to be fixed; a pair of side wall portions provided on both sides with the bottom wall portion interposed therebetween with respect to the vertical direction and formed so as to protrude along a protruding direction intersecting the vertical direction; an accommodation space portion defined and formed by the bottom wall portion and the pair of side wall portions, into which a plurality of wiring members having conductivity is inserted; and a partition wall that is formed so as to protrude from the bottom wall portion along the protruding direction and partitions the accommodation space portion into a first accommodation space portion positioned on an upper side in the vertical direction, through which a part of the plurality of wiring members is inserted, and a second accommodation space portion positioned on a lower side in the vertical direction, through which at least a remaining part of the plurality of wiring members is inserted, wherein the partition wall has a root portion protruding from the bottom wall portion and formed in a curved shape.

The above and other objects, features, advantages and technical and industrial significance of this invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, an embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited by the embodiment. In addition, constituent elements in the following embodiments include those that can be easily replaced by those skilled in the art or those that are substantially the same.

A protectorillustrated inis incorporated in a wire harness mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile. In addition, for example, the wire harness is configured for connection between devices mounted on a vehicle such that a plurality of wiring members used for power supply and signal communication is bundled to form a collective component, and the plurality of wiring members is connected to each device by a connector or the like.

Then, the protectorof the present embodiment is provided with a partition wallcapable of vertically dividing an accommodation space portionS through which the plurality of wiring members W is inserted, and a root portion(rising portion) of the partition wallis formed in a curved shape, thereby realizing a configuration capable of holding and accommodating the wiring members W at an appropriate position. Hereinafter, the configuration of the protectorwill be described in detail with reference to.

In the following description, among a first direction, a second direction, and a third direction intersecting each other, the first direction is referred to as “length direction X”, the second direction is referred to as “depth direction Y”, and the third direction is referred to as “height direction Z”. Here, the length direction X, the depth direction Y, and the height direction Z are orthogonal to each other. In addition, the length direction X typically corresponds to the length direction (longitudinal direction) of the protector, the left-right direction of a part to be fixed A, and the like. In addition, the depth direction Y typically corresponds to the thickness direction of the protector, the thickness direction of the part to be fixed A. In addition, the height direction Z typically corresponds to the width direction (transverse direction) of the protector, the up-down direction of the part to be fixed A, and the like. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the height direction Z corresponds to the vertical direction, and the depth direction Y corresponds to the protruding direction intersecting the vertical direction, that is, the horizontal direction. Note that each direction used in the following description will be described as a direction in a state where the protectoris fixed to the part to be fixed A unless otherwise specified.

Further, the part to be fixed A referred to herein is, for example, a body of a vehicle.

Furthermore, the wire harness may further include an electrical connection box, a grommet, a fixture, a connector, and the like.

As illustrated in, the protectorincludes a base memberaccommodating a plurality of wiring members W inside, and a cover member.

The wiring member W is routed in the vehicle and electrically connects each device. The wiring member W of the present embodiment is an insulated wire configured to include a conductive portion (core wire) having conductivity and an insulating coating portion having insulation, and the conductive portion is coated with the insulating coating portion. The conductive portion here is a stranded wire obtained by twisting a plurality of conductive element wires. In addition, the insulating coating portion is extrusion molded to be formed of, for example, a resin material having an insulating property (PP, PVC, crosslinked PE, or the like, which is appropriately selected in consideration of abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, heat resistance, and the like). Note that the conductive portion may be a bundle of a plurality of element wires.

In addition, the wiring member W has a cross-sectional shape of the conductive portion (a cross-sectional shape in a direction intersecting an extending direction of the wiring member W) which is a substantially circular shape, and a cross-sectional shape of the insulating coating portion which is a substantially annular shape, and has a substantially circular cross-sectional shape as a whole (see). In addition, in the present embodiment, four wiring members W are provided, and each of the wiring members W is accommodated inside the protector.

The base memberis formed of an insulating resin material or the like, and accommodates the wiring members W therein to protect the wiring members W. As illustrated in, the base memberincludes a bottom wall portionand a pair of side wall portionsand. In the base member, the bottom wall portionand the pair of side wall portionsandare integrated, and a cross-sectional shape along the height direction Z is formed in a U shape. Further, as illustrated in, in the base member, when viewed from the length direction X, the bottom wall portionextends along the height direction Z, and the pair of side wall portionsandextends along the depth direction Y intersecting the height direction Z. Therefore, the base memberof the present embodiment includes an accommodation space portionS as an internal space, a pair of insertion openingsand(see) opening along the extending direction Lof the protector, and an opening(see) opening in the depth direction Y.

In addition, as illustrated in, the base memberincludes a first partand a second partbent with respect to the first partThe first partis linearly formed along the length direction X. In addition, the second partis formed in a curved shape and is formed in a rounded shape. Therefore, the base memberof the present embodiment is formed in a J shape when viewed from the depth direction Y. Furthermore, as illustrated in, the extending direction Lof the protectoris curved in a J shape and extends according to the shape of the base member.

The cover memberis formed of an insulating resin material or the like, and protects the wiring members W accommodated inside the base memberby being assembled to the base memberas illustrated in. As illustrated in, the cover memberis formed in a size capable of closing the openingof the base member. In addition, the cover memberis formed in a plate shape extending along the length direction X and the height direction Z in a state where the openingof the base memberis closed, and the depth direction Y is the plate thickness direction. At this time, the cover memberis assembled to the base membervia a locking mechanism (not illustrated) to be held at a closing position where the openingis closed. In addition, the cover memberis disposed at a distance from the bottom wall portion along the depth direction Y which is the opening direction of the openingin a state where the openingis closed, and is positioned to face the bottom wall portion. The locking mechanism here includes, for example, locking portions provided on the side wall portionsandof the base memberand locked portions provided on the cover memberso as to correspond to the locking portions.

Next, the base memberconfigured as described above will be described in detail.

The bottom wall portionis a portion extending along the length direction X and the height direction Z and formed in a plate shape in which the depth direction Y is the plate thickness direction. As illustrated in, the bottom wall portionis disposed at a distance from the openingalong the depth direction Y which is the opening direction of the openingand is positioned to face the opening. Further, the bottom wall portionis fixed to the part to be fixed A extending along the length direction X and the height direction Z so as to be disposed facing the part to be fixed A. Therefore, the bottom wall portionof the present embodiment extends along the plane direction of the part to be fixed A in a state of being fixed to the part to be fixed A. As illustrated in, the bottom wall portionof the present embodiment is formed according to the shapes of the first partand the second partof the base member. Therefore, the bottom wall portionis formed to be bent in the extending direction Lof the protector.

The side wall portionsandextend along the extending direction Land the depth direction Y of the protector, and are formed in a plate shape in which a direction intersecting the extending direction Lof the protectorwhen viewed from the depth direction Y is a plate thickness direction. As illustrated in, the side wall portionsandare disposed at a distance along the height direction Z intersecting the opening direction of the opening. In addition, the side wall portionsandare positioned to face each other by disposing the side wall portionon the upper side in the height direction Z and disposing the side wall portionon the lower side in the height direction Z. As illustrated in, the side wall portionsandare connected to both ends of the bottom wall portionin the height direction Z, respectively. More specifically, the side wall portionis erected from an upper end of the bottom wall portionin the height direction Z, and the side wall portionis erected from a lower end of the bottom wall portionin the height direction Z. Therefore, the side wall portionsandof the present embodiment are provided on both sides with the bottom wall portioninterposed therebetween with respect to the height direction Z in a state of being fixed to the part to be fixed A, and are formed to protrude in the depth direction Y intersecting the height direction Z. In addition, as illustrated in, the side wall portionsandof the present embodiment are formed according to the shapes of the first partand the second partof the base member. Therefore, the side wall portionsandare formed to be bent in the extending direction Lof the protector. In addition, a fixing mechanism B for the part to be fixed A is provided outside the side wall portionof the present embodiment. Therefore, the base memberis typically fixed to the part to be fixed A via a fixing member such as a bracket mounted on the part to be fixed A by inserting and assembling the fixing member into the fixing mechanism B.

The accommodation space portionS is a portion defined and formed by the bottom wall portionand the pair of side wall portionsand. In addition, the insertion openingsandare portions defined and formed by the ends (also referred to as edge portions) of the pair of side wall portionsand, and are portions sandwiched between the ends of the side wall portionsandpositioned along the extending direction Lof the protector. As illustrated in, the insertion openingsandare disposed at a distance along the extending direction Lof the protectorby forming the insertion openingson the first partside of the base memberand the second partside of the base member. Therefore, in the base memberof the present embodiment, by inserting the wiring member W into the accommodation space portionS through the pair of insertion openingsand, the wiring member W can be routed in a state of being curved in a J shape along the extending direction Lof the protector.

The openingis a portion defined and formed by edge portions of the pair of side wall portionsand, and is a portion sandwiched by distal ends of the side wall portionsandpositioned along the depth direction Y. Here, the distal ends of the side wall portionsandare portions opposite to the root portion protruding from the bottom wall portion. In the protectorof the present embodiment, when the cover memberis assembled to the base member, the openingis closed by the cover member, and the accommodation space portionS located corresponding to the openingis covered (see). Therefore, the protectorcan hold the wiring members W by accommodating the wiring members W in the internal space surrounded by the wall portion of the base memberand the wall portion of the cover member. In addition, in the protector, the base memberis fixed to the part to be fixed A via a fixing member (not illustrated) such as a bracket, so that the wiring path of the wiring member W accommodated inside the protectorcan be restricted.

Next, a configuration of the partition wallprovided in the base memberwill be described.

The partition wallis formed of an insulating resin material or the like, and is provided inside the base memberto divide the accommodation space portionS of the base memberinto a plurality of spaces. The partition wallextends, as illustrated in, along the extending direction Land the depth direction Y of the protector, and is formed in a plate shape in which a direction intersecting the extending direction Lof the protectorwhen viewed from the depth direction Y is a plate thickness direction. As illustrated in, the partition wallis erected from the vicinity of the center in the height direction Z of the bottom wall portion, and is provided between the side wall portionpositioned on the upper side in the height direction Z and the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the height direction Z. Therefore, in the partition wallof the present embodiment, the pair of side wall portionsandis provided on both sides in the height direction Z in a state of being fixed to the part to be fixed A, and is sandwiched between the side wall portionpositioned on the upper side in the height direction Z and the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the height direction Z. The partition wallis formed so as to protrude in the depth direction Y intersecting the height direction Z, and is provided along the pair of side wall portionsand. In addition, the partition wallis formed integrally with the bottom wall portionand the pair of side wall portionsanddescribed above, so that the accommodation space portionS of the base membercan be partitioned into two of a first accommodation space portionSa positioned on the upper side in the height direction Z and a second accommodation space portionSb positioned on the lower side in the height direction Z.

In addition, as illustrated in, the partition wallincludes a first partand a second partbent with respect to the first partThe first partis linearly formed along the length direction X. In addition, the second partis formed in a curved shape and is formed in a rounded shape. Therefore, the partition wallof the present embodiment is formed in a J shape when viewed from the depth direction Y. Further, the partition wallis formed to be partially bent, so that rigidity can be enhanced as compared with a case where the partition wall is formed linearly.

As illustrated in, the partition wallhas a root portionprotruding from the bottom wall portionformed in a curved shape. Therefore, in the partition wallof the present embodiment, the corner portion formed between the partition wall and the bottom wall portionis formed in a rounded shape, and the shape viewed from the plate thickness direction is formed in a curved shape concave toward the inner side (inside corner). Therefore, in the partition wall, since the root portionis formed by a concave curved surface, it is possible to prevent stress concentration as compared with a case where the root portionis formed linearly.

In addition, in the partition wallconfigured as described above, the weight of the wiring member W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa is applied, and in the pair of side wall portionsand, the weight of the wiring member W inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb is applied to the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the height direction Z. In the base memberof the present embodiment, as illustrated in, four wiring members W are inserted into the accommodation space portionS, two of the four wiring members W are inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa, and the remaining two wiring members W are inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb. Further, the two wiring members W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa and the two wiring members W inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb are arranged side by side along the depth direction Y. Therefore, the partition wallcomes into contact with each of the two wiring members W inserted through the first accommodation space portionSa, so that the wiring members W can be placed and each of the wiring members W can be placed without being stacked. In addition, the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the height direction Z comes into contact with each of the two wiring members W inserted through the second accommodation space portionSb, so that the wiring members W can be placed and each of the wiring members W can be placed without being stacked. Therefore, in the base memberof the present embodiment, by dividing the accommodation space portionS through which the wiring members W are inserted into two of the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb by the partition wall, the number of the wiring members W accommodated in each of the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb can be reduced. In addition, the base membercan reduce the weight applied to the bottom portion of the first accommodation space portionSa and the bottom portion of the second accommodation space portionSb by reducing the number of the wiring members W accommodated in the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb, respectively.

The protectordescribed above includes the bottom wall portionextending along the height direction Z (corresponding to the vertical direction) in a state of being fixed to the part to be fixed A, the pair of side wall portionsandprovided on both sides with the bottom wall portioninterposed therebetween with respect to the height direction Z and formed so as to protrude along the protruding direction (corresponding to the depth direction Y) intersecting the height direction z, the accommodation space portionS defined and formed by the bottom wall portionand the pair of side wall portionsand, into which the plurality of wiring members W having conductivity is inserted, and the partition wallthat is formed so as to protrude from the bottom wall portionalong the depth direction Y and partitions the accommodation space portionS into the first accommodation space portionSa positioned on the upper side in the height direction Z, through which a part of the plurality of wiring members W is inserted, and the second accommodation space portionSb positioned on the lower side in the height direction Z, through which at least a remaining part of the plurality of wiring members W is inserted, and the partition wallhas the root portionprotruding from the bottom wall portionand formed in a curved shape.

According to such a configuration, in the protector, the accommodation space portionS defined and formed by the bottom wall portionand the pair of side wall portionsandis vertically divided by the partition wall, so that the plurality of wiring members W inserted into one accommodation space portionS can be divided into the wiring members W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa and the wiring members W inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb. In addition, the protectorreduces the number of the wiring members W accommodated in each of the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb, so that it is possible to disperse the load applied per unit area of the partition wallserving as the bottom portion of the first accommodation space portionSa and the side wall portion (the side wall portionin the present embodiment) serving as the bottom portion of the second accommodation space portionSb when the wire harness vibrates due to the vibration of the vehicle or the like. In addition, the protectorcan hold the wiring member W at a more appropriate position by reducing the number of the wiring members W accommodated in each of the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb, so that it is possible to suppress twisting of the wiring member W when the wire harness vibrates due to vibration of the vehicle or the like. In addition, when the wire harness vibrates in the height direction Z due to the vibration of the vehicle or the like, the protectorcan suppress application of a large load to the entire protectorby applying a large load to the partition wallserving as the bottom portion of the first accommodation space portionSa and the side wall portionserving as the bottom portion of the second accommodation space portionSb. In addition, since the root portionof the partition wallis formed in a curved shape, it is possible to prevent stress concentration as compared with a case where the root portionis formed linearly. Therefore, the protectorcan ensure sufficient strength that can withstand a large load applied to the partition wall. Therefore, in the protectorof the present embodiment, the accommodation space portionS through which the plurality of wiring members W is inserted is vertically divided by the partition wall, so that the wiring members W can be held and accommodated at appropriate positions.

Further, the partition wallof the protectordescribed above is inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa and comes into contact with the plurality of wiring members W arranged side by side along the depth direction Y to place the wiring members W, and the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the height direction Z of the pair of side wall portionsandis inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb and comes into contact with the plurality of wiring members W arranged side by side along the depth direction Y to place the wiring members W. According to such a configuration, the protectoris disposed in a state where the plurality of wiring members W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa is in contact with the partition walland is arranged side by side in a line. In addition, the protectoris disposed in a state where the plurality of wiring members W inserted into the second accommodation space portionSb is in contact with the side wall portionand is arranged side by side in a line. Therefore, the protectorcan correct the positions of the plurality of wiring members W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa and the second accommodation space portionSb, thereby appropriately keeping the positional relationship between the wiring members W. In addition, by correcting the positions of the wiring members W inserted into the protector, it is possible to suppress twisting of the wiring members W or application of a large load to the partition wallserving as the bottom portion of the first accommodation space portionSa and the side wall portionserving as the bottom portion of the second accommodation space portionSb when the wire harness vibrates due to vibration of the vehicle or the like. Therefore, the protectorof the present embodiment can hold and accommodate the wiring member W at a more appropriate position.

Further, the partition wallof the protectordescribed above has the first partand the second partbent with respect to the first partAccording to such a configuration, in the partition wall, since the second partis formed in a curved shape, so that rigidity can be enhanced as compared with a case where the partition wall is formed linearly. Therefore, the protectorcan ensure more sufficient strength that can withstand a large load applied to the partition wall. Therefore, the protectorof the present embodiment can hold and accommodate the wiring member W inserted into the first accommodation space portionSa at a more appropriate position.

Note that the protectoraccording to the embodiment of the present invention described above is not limited to the embodiment described above, and various modifications can be made within the scope described in the claims.

For example, the positional relationship between the protectorand the part to be fixed A to which the protectoris fixed is not limited to the form illustrated in. In the above description, it has been described that the part to be fixed A extends along the length direction X and the height direction Z (that is, the vertical direction), but the part to be fixed A may extend, for example, along the length direction X and the depth direction Y (that is, the horizontal direction). In addition, the part to be fixed A may be disposed facing the side wall portionor may be disposed facing the side wall portion. The planar direction of the part to be fixed A is not particularly limited as long as the bottom wall portionconstituting the base memberextends along the vertical direction, and the pair of side wall portionsandand the partition wallextend in the direction intersecting the vertical direction, so that the weight of the wiring member W inserted into the base memberis applied to the side wall portionand the partition walllocated on the lower side in the vertical direction.

In addition, the number of partition wallsis not particularly limited. For example, two partition walls may be provided between the side wall portionpositioned on the upper side in the vertical direction and the side wall portionpositioned on the lower side in the vertical direction. In this case, the accommodation space portionS of the base membermay be partitioned by two partition walls into three of a first accommodation space portion positioned on the upper side in the vertical direction, a second accommodation space portion positioned on the lower side in the vertical direction, and a third accommodation space portion positioned in the middle in the vertical direction and formed between the first accommodation space portion and the second accommodation space portion.

In addition, the number of the wiring members accommodated in each of the accommodation space portions vertically divided by the partition wallis not particularly limited.

Further, the shape of the base memberis not limited to the form illustrated in.

Furthermore, the shape of the partition wallis not limited to the form illustrated in. For example, although it has been described that the partition wallis formed in a J shape when viewed from the depth direction Y, the partition wall may be formed in a linear shape or may be formed in another shape such as a U shape.

Although it has been described that the partition wallextends along the extending direction Lof the protector(alternatively, the extending direction of the pair of side wall portionsand), the extending direction of the partition wallis not particularly limited as long as it partitions the accommodation space portionS into two spaces with respect to the height direction Z.

In addition, the protectoraccording to the present embodiment may be configured by appropriately combining the components of the embodiment described above.

The protector according to the present embodiment can hold and accommodate the wiring member at an appropriate position.

Although the invention has been described with respect to specific embodiments for a complete and clear disclosure, the appended claims are not to be thus limited but are to be construed as embodying all modifications and alternative constructions that may occur to one skilled in the art that fairly fall within the basic teaching herein set forth.